Impressive New Chef + Menu at Cinder

Cinder, a cider/sour bar and artisanal pizza restaurant in Rittenhouse, has recently released a new menu by their new chef, Chef Oliver Muguia. Complete with 32 taps of ciders, ales, and sours, Cinder specializes in “bar food” appetizers and specialty wood-fired pizzas. While some guests come just for the drinks, the quality of the menu brings in many guests for a full-service dinner. Oliver explained that he escalated the new menu even further by aiming to create “upscale bar food” that is familiar but has an unexpected twist.

One of the most popular dishes on the new menu is the duck springrolls, complete with spiced horseradish, cherry chutney, and fig jam. While duck is normally quite heavy and dry, the duck spring rolls are bursting with flavor, and are well paired with the light fruity saucesand flaky exterior.

Cinder’s wood fire pizza oven can make up to 3 pizzas at a time, so each pizza is made with extreme care. The most popular pizza is the Prosciutto, complete with arugula Pesto, d’anjou pear, and mozzarella – a winning combination.

The smoked scallops with glazed pork belly and polenta were also extremely good, and very unexpected for “bar food.” The polenta was incredibly buttery, and the pork belly was perfectly juicy and tender.

The Cinder Fries are one of the relatively few items that carry over from the previous menu, but they also got a facelift. The fries are now complete with three types of pork; Guanciale, bacon, chorizo, in addition to pepper jack cheese and scallions. The final touch are the marinated tomatoes, which add a satisfyingly fresh balance.

In addition to the new dinner menu, Cinder is expanding to other services as well. While no details of the brunch menu have been officially released, you can count on Oliver’s experience at Green Eggs to guarantee it is going to be good (especially because he also says his favorite dish is the french toast!). General Manager Garrett explained that they are hoping to become “the” brunch spot in center city.

While the wide variety of ales, ciders, and sours Cinder offers is impressive, it is also daunting to a novice. No plans have been formally made yet, but the managers are considering offering flights or pairing recommendations in the near future.

Overall, Cinder shows incredible potential to be another classic, well-loved Philly restaurant. We are excited to see their brunch menu!

Leah Sprague